Rinat Akhmetshin

Rinat Akhmetshin is a Russian lobbyist and alleged former Soviet counterintelligence officer who was one of five Russia-linked attendees at the June 9, 2016, meeting at Trump Tower in New York.

Akhmetshin served in the Soviet Army in the 1980s and has frequently boasted about his connections within both Russian and American intelligence services, although he has denied allegations that he was a member of Russian military intelligence. Since arriving in the U.S. in 1994, Akhmetshin has frequently lobbied on behalf of Eastern European oligarchs and other Russian interests, including defending two Russian businessmen accused of hacking adversaries’ computers in a case that was later dropped. In an interview with the Financial Times, Akhmetshin said he attended the June 9 meeting on behalf of a Russian-funded foundation trying to overturn Russia’s ban on U.S. adoptions and contest the story that led to the imposition of the Magnitsky Act. (Photo credit: Alex Wong / Getty Images)